Veil: Hello?
"VEIL!!" Nettle's voice is full of relief and surprise-- almost a choked sob. "Oh goddess, where have you been all day!!"
"Where have I been? Nettle!! WHY DIDN'T YOU CALL ME LAST NIGHT!!! I was worried sick!!" Veil fumes
Nettle is shocked into silence for a moment-- trying to think of what to say after being taken off-guard.
Nettle: "Oh no...Veil...I'm so sorry...oh, please forgive me!! Has anyone called you-- like David or Jacob?? OH VEIL! You must have been worried SICK!"
Veil takes a deep breath and launches into a tirade, though something tells Nettle that her heart's just not in it. "Nettle, I am not only your friend, but I am your mentor. It killed me that I could not accompany you to confront Doctor Sleethe."
Veil: "To think that you, David, everyone, was entering into such a dangerous place and that I could not follow..."
Veil: "And then, to have to sit quietly at home, waiting for word from you, to hear that you were ok.."
Veil: "Afraid to go near the lab in fear of attracting the wrong kind of attention.. and you forgot to call me??!!"

Nettle has a look of deep regret and sorrow on her face as she hears Veil's words. "Ooh Veil!!! Oh I don't know what to say...you're right. I was...oh what a bad 24 hours!!! We're OK Veil-- we're all OK and Sleethe is dead!! I was so SURE David was going to call you!! He...oh what a long story!"
"He did call me, but that's not the point. YOU were supposed to call me! Nettle!" Veil sounds like she might start crying. "How could you forget me like that!"
Nettle: "Still, that's no excuse. I am your best friend as well as student, and I have failed you."
"Oh Veil!!! I didn't forget you!! Oh no...not you..." Nettle's voice catches and Veil can hear her starting to cry on the other end.
Veil takes a deep breath to calm herself. Crying twice in as many days... this is not like her at all.
"Nettle I'm sorry. Don't start crying now..." Veil sniffles. "Look, lets get together and talk. I hate the telephone, it's so impersonal."
Nettle: "Oh Veil!! I admit I was selfish, and I thought Alec and I were going to our room to celebrate, so when I heard that David was going to call...ooh I'm so selfish!!"
Nettle nods and says "Yes, oh please! I need to be with another human!!"
Veil raises an eyebrow
Veil: "What are you with right now?" she asks in an arch tone, her good humor coming back.
Nettle is quiet again for a moment, and then the sniffling starts up again. "I'm alone...and will be...oh goddess..." Nettle tries to compose herself again and Veil hears choked sobs.
When Nettle can talk again, she answers, "I have the gremlin, I can meet you anywhere."
Veil: "Oh no...ok come to the Dragonfly cafe. I can be there in five minutes." Veil hangs up the phone, hurridly grabs her coat and is out the door after petting her cat goodbye.
Nettle stand with the cell phone for a few seconds before she realizes she's just listening to air, and then fold up the phone and puts it away. Walking steadily to the room, she averts her eyes from the bed and Alec's things and grabs her coat, making her way out of the chantry and to the gremlin.

Nettle starts up the gremlin and drives quietly to the cafe. Nettle pulls into the parking lot of the colorfully-painted cafe and sees Veil standing outside, smoking a clove and watching her.
She's wrapped up in a thick black velvet coat that drapes her from shoulders to ankles, and the hand that raises to her mouth as she smokes is encased in soft black leather gloves.
Nettle gets out and walks up to Veil-- her eyes red and puffy-- and without missing a beat, hugs her tightly.
Veil: "Oooh...poor Nettle...tell me what happened.." Veil soothes, stroking Nettle's hair.
"Here.." Veil leans back and hands the clove to Nettle before hugging her again. "That'll make you feel better"
Nettle: "I don't mean to turn the sympathies to me after I'm at fault, Veil. I really don't. I guess I always have some good excuse for failing you." Nettle attempts a sideways smile, but it looks frightful.
Nettle takes the clove gratefully and inhales deeply, closing her eyes.
Nettle holds the smoke in her lungs, and when she releases it, she opens her eyes again, and she's calmer.
Veil: "Hey, it's ok.. I know you didn't forget on purpose..." Veil gives Nettle a squeeze, then fumbles around in her purse for a hankerchief.
Nettle smiles. "Veil, I feel so much better having you here with me! I'm so sorry for...everything I haven't done."
She pulls out a beautiful lace handkerchief and hands it to Nettle. "Here, dry your eyes, then we can go inside. I'll get some coffee into you and you can tell me what's wrong. This isn't about the clone ALec in the lab, is it?"
Nettle takes the hankerchief gratefully, mascara staining her cheeks, and then notices the beauty of its craftsmanship.
Nettle: "Oh, I don't want to ruin this, Veil!"
Veil smiles gently
Veil: "You won't ruin it Nettle. You look like you still need a good cry. Go on ahead, it'll make you feel better!"
Veil fumbles around in her purse again and takes out another clove, knowing this might take awhile for her emotionally overwrought student.

Nettle laughs a little. "I've been crying for 24 hours, and I'm sure I'll do a lot more of it!" Nettle wipes her eyes hesitantly and gives Veil a big smile. "Coffee sounds perfect."
Veil grins, pocketing the clove
Veil: "C'mon then, lets get you out of this cold." she takes Nettle's arm and leads her inside the cafe.
Nettle laughs quietly and follows Veil into the cafe, grateful for the human contact.
They enter the cafe and are instantly filled with the wonderful aroma that always accompanies such places.
Nettle moves to take off her coat, and realizes she's in an tight, old, white T-shirt and baggy pants, and decides to keep it on.
Muted conversations surround the two girls, and the new age clientelle hardly give them a second look. Veil leads Nettle to a table in the corner near a window and takes off her coat. She's wearing a tight black velvet dress that buttons up her neck and flows down to brush the floor as she walks. Long sleeves conceal her slender arms, and she looks very delicate and fragile as she sits down on the small chair. Her long burgundy hair frames her pale face, and dark red lipstick emphasizes her full lips. She is looking positively radiant today... something is different..

Veil takes Nettle's hand and squeezes it. "Now tell me what has happened."
Nettle smiles and looks down. "Alec is gone facing his demons..."
Nettle: "He's going to Chicago...to her gravesite...then to Balador...to face his tradition..."
Veil: "Ahhhhhh"
Veil nods slowly, finally understanding Nettle's distress
Veil: "He is a brave man, Nettle. You are lucky to have him."
Nettle: "I dropped him off at the airport today. He keeps stressing that he doesn't know what's going to happen, and he might not come back alive..."
Nettle laughs a little at this. "Bravery is overrated."
Veil: "What I mean is, not many would have the courage to do what he is doing. He's resolving his past.. perhaps so that you can have a better future."
Nettle looks up into Veil's eyes. "You know what I did?"
Veil 's eyes darken as she thinks of her own inner demons.
Veil returns Nettle's gaze. "No, what did you do?"
Nettle sees Veil's eyes darken, and makes one of her famous mental-notes to ask about it.
Nettle: "With Tania's help, we reversed his...procedure. He can now get me pregnant...but I didn't tell him about it until this morning."
Veil 's eyes widen.
Veil: "You did what? Without him knowing..?"
Nettle nods slowly, her eyes large.
Nettle: "I did it...to try to ensure that a part of him with be with me always...but I'm not pregnant. He was very mad at me this morning when I told him..." You can't tell if Nettle looks regretful or relieved.
Veil: "Oh, goddess...Nettle.."
Veil: "You're sure you're not?"
Veil stares at you with a piercing expression
Nettle nods back at Veil. "From everything you've taught me about Life, I have found no life within me. You're welcome to check for me, Veil." Veil sees a glimmer of hopefulness flash through Nettle's eyes.
Veil sighs, perhaps a bit sadly, then stares at Nettle intently
Veil: "No, you are right. No life grows within you. Yet."
Nettle raises her eyebrows. "Yet? What do you mean by that?"
Nettle clenches her hands.
Veil: "One day, perhaps, you will have children. But not now."
Nettle relaxes and sits back a little. "Oh yes... I hope to, Veil!!"
Veil forces a smile

Veil: "You will be a wonderful mother, Nettle. I can see it in you already."
Nettle smiles and blushes radiently for a moment, and then she thinks about the possibility of the father of her future children not coming back, and her face goes back to its melancholy shade.
Nettle: "Thank you, Veil. You see, this is why I've been so depressed and why I didn't call...but I don't want to depress you with my story any longer. The goddess will resolve it as she wills. Veil-- what's wrong?"
Veil: "Your talk of children.. and after what happened yesterday.." Veil's eyes sparkle with unshed tears. "I..I can't have children, Nettle."
Nettle's face freezes in a look of shock and sadness.
"Veil!! That can't be possible!! HOW?? WHY??" Nettle grasps Veil's hands tightly.
Veil holds back the tears, determined not to cause a scene in the cafe. "I.." she pauses, trying to collect her thoughts. "I can't tell you. Not now, maybe not ever. There is something that I have to do...the whole reason I was brought into this world...I.."
Veil swallows past the lump in her throat. "I don't know how I'm going to tell David..."
Nettle: "VEIL!!! Tell me!! Tell me SOMETHING!!"
Nettle grasps Veil's hands harder.
Veil: "If I had children it would interfere with what I have to do. I...I wasn't born. I was created. For a purpose. Once I have done what I was meant to do..well, maybe then I could..maybe.."
Nettle thinks to herself, "David??
Nettle's jaw drops.
Veil expertly wipes away the tears falling down her cheeks without smearing any of her makeup.
Nettle stares at Veil for long moments, her hands still clenched around Veil's.
Nettle whispers. "Who created you? And for what purpose? And WHEN?"
Veil looks up as a waiter finally arrives at their table.
Veil: "What would you two ladies like this evening?" he asks, pen poised above a pad of paper.
Veil clears her throat and hastily orders a cup of chamomile tea
Nettle tries to neutralize her face quickly, and looks up at the waiter. "I will have a croissant sandwich...two of them...and some mocha cherry cappuchino, please!"
Veil: The man nods, then disappears back into the kitchen

Nettle: "I'm starving...just felt the first pangs for th first time today...you do wonders for me, Veil."
Nettle: "But you're not getting off that easy. Please...what can you tell me??"
Veil sighs, absently picking at the napkin in front of her
Veil: "Remember what I told you...about Naktrassa?"
Veil: "And the trees?"
Nettle nods slowly, her eyes large and taking in everything Veil says.
Veil: "I..I was not entirely truthful with you."
Veil looks sad
Nettle raises her eyebrows and leans in.
Veil: "I told you that not much is known about the great trees and their guardians, because they are so ancient. This is true. To an extent. Not much is known to any but a small handful. I am one of them. I know about them, because I hold a Guardian to one of the fallen trees inside me."
Nettle's eyes open wider and she falls back against her seat.
Veil averts her face, letting her hair fall down around her like a shield
Nettle: "Veil...what's going to happen to you!!??"
Nettle's voice is a harsh whisper, her face looking panicked.

Veil: "Nothing...nothing's going to happen to me. That's the whole point..I cannot age, I cannot have children..I've been carrying this burden with me for longer than I can remember..I have to find a way to bring back the Trees, or everything will be lost."
Veil: "But, the only thing that will bring them back has been lost for centuries! I've been looking my entire life.."
Nettle: "But...but the Guardian is inside of you...so is it going to come out when the time comes?? Will you be able to be mortal after that? Oh please don't tell me you might die, too!!"
Nettle is frozen in shock, your hands being squeezed painfully hard.
"He told me, that once I fulfilled my purpose I would be mortal...but it's been so long.." Veil feels tears well up in her eyes again
Veil: "And..Naktrassa's Tree is dying. She has already chosen her D'thraene, that's what I'm called.."
Veil: "He wasn't created like I was, and I think it would destroy him, to be chosen.."
Veil's voice is choked and strained from the effort of holding in her tears.
Nettle tries to work her mouth for a few moments, and finally words come out. "Veil...I've never seen you like this...I'm scared."
Veil wipes away her tears again.
Nettle: "You...guard another tree somewhere? And a...um...D'thraene has been called who isn't like you? Why? What..."
Nettle shakes her head in confusion and reaches for a napkin, leaning forward to wipe Veil's eyes for her.
Veil: "I'm sorry Nettle, I should not have told you."
Nettle: "NO!!! I want to know everything about you! I can handle Alec going off to an uncertain fate, I can handle anything you have to tell me! Please-- what are you searching for??"
Veil: "I don't guard the Tree..the Tree has been destroyed. But I hold the Guardian..who is tied to the essence of the tree, even though it's mortal shell isn't here anymore."
Veil: "He sleeps inside me, but I can sometimes feel him stirring..times I think that I might be close to what I'm looking for."
Nettle: "Are there others like you-- who have Guardians of dead trees inside of them? Are you going to help this new person? Do you know who he is?"
Nettle rushes her questions out quickly as if Veil is a door that might shut at any moment.
Nettle: "What times are those, Veil??"
Nettle: "I...want to help you. I want you to be happy!"
Veil: "Naktrassa is one of three left. Her tree is dying, and she has chosen a living mortal to host her spirit..."
Veil finishes in a rush.
Veil: "Times like the first time I saw David...I think that's who she's chosen.."
Nettle: "You have...a dragon's spirit in you? Is that what you're saying?"
Veil covers her face in her hands and sobs
Nettle's face goes white and she stares at Veil in silence for a moment.
Nettle thinks back to when they first met David, and begins to nod slowly.
"But...what's going to happen to HIM!? Oh Veil..."Nettle gets up and slides in next to Veil and wraps her arms around her mentor.
Veil clutches at Nettle, uncaring now at the staring faces in the cafe
Nettle holds Veil close and strokes HER hair this time.
Nettle: "Veil...I know how much you care for David...I've never seen you care for someone like this. Never, What did he say on the phone when he called you?"
"I want to tell him, but I can't.." Veil mumbles "I love him, Nettle. More than anyone else I have ever known. And I feel like I'm betraying him."
Nettle: "Oh Veil! You've done nothing! You met him the same time we did! Your explanations will only bring enlightenment to him! It was not your doing!"
Veil: "He told me this morning that he was too old for games, and all I could think about was that I'm old enough to be his grandmother ten times over!!"
Nettle: "Oh, he called again this morning?"
Nettle leans back and smiles at Veil.

Veil: "No..."
Veil: "I stayed at his house again last night.."
"Ooohh..." Nettle pulls Veil's hair back so she can see her face. "So you've seen Emily then?" Then Nettle gets another look on her face.
Nettle smiles slowly.
"Emily is so beautiful...I almost feel like I've been given a chance to become a mother.." Veil sighs
Nettle: "Where exactly in David's house did you STAY, Veil?"
"I stayed on the guest couch, like I did before," Veil answers evasively.
Nettle smiles and hugs Veil. "Veil, I know you better than that. You're glowing! And now this mother-business!" Nettle smiles mischieviously and concentrates on Veil for a moment.
Veil blushes and looks at Nettle
Nettle suddenly bursts out in a wide smile and laughs. "VEIL! YES!! Woo-hoooo! You and DAVID!! OOH! It's what you've been wanting!!"
Veil: "You know...you know that as long as you've known me, the only time I'm with someone is during one of our rituals."
Nettle nods, still smiling.
Veil: "When what we are doing is for the glory of the Goddess."
Veil: "This is the first time...in a very long time...that it's been for me."
Nettle: "This is quite a change for you! Oh! We are so similar, you and I! I'd never had a committed relationship before Alec! Are...are you and David together now?"
Veil: "I think we are. Yes, yes we are. IF he still wants to be with me once he learns the truth.."
Veil gets a sorrowful expression on her face
Nettle keeps her arm around Veil and leans back a bit. "Veil, from someone who knows first-hand, please tell him now, and tell him quickly. Don't let this wait until you're in the most blissful moment you've even known before you tell him there's something you've been hiding!"
Veil nods
Veil: "Yes, you're right. I should have told him last night..before anything.." Veil takes a deep breath. "Before anything happened. But I'll tell him the next time I see him. I have to."
Nettle turns Veil's face to hers. "Please...if you're both feeling the same thing, then the goddess has brought you together and will keep you together. Tell him now while there's less pain...less possibility of your fears that he'll think you betrayed his trust."
Nettle nods and smiles. "Then...you and David have talked about this child seriously?"
Veil: "Not yet. He's adopting her, I didn't want to presume to step in.. to interfere. David is a very solitary person."
Veil: "And the bond between them will be tenuous at first. I touched her mind so that she'd be succeptible to David's suggestions, but that will begin to fade in time, and if the bond between them is not strong enough it will break."
Nettle: "Oh that is tragic...you should have seen him standing up to the other mages!! Oh Veil!!! Justice wanted to kill her!!"
Nettle looks angrily at the table while she speaks.
Nettle: "I think Tania was on her side...Jacob was very supportive of David last night. He's a true friend for sure."
Veil smiles tenderly, thinking of David
Veil: "I'm sure that he put up quite a fight.. he is very strong in what he believes."
Veil: "But you should tell Justice, and Tania, that not only will they have to get through David, they'll have to get through me. Nothing is going to happen to that child because of their interference."
Veil gets a dangerous look in her eyes
Nettle nods, still fuming a little. "I don't know what we're going to do with Justice sometimes...we all seem to bump heads with her a lot." Nettle looks up and sees Veil's look.
Nettle smiles slowly and looks at Veil.
Nettle: "And through me."
Veil smiles at her student
Veil: "Thank you Nettle. It's a shame you can't see her again.. I know you'd be wonderful around children."
Veil sighs a bit regretfully
Nettle: "Oh no...that's right! I can't see her until...what, she's 18?? Oh, this is harsh! And to think of how I must have looked when she entered the lab!"

Nettle looks at Veil. "So you know about the Alec-clone being there..." Nettle smiles a little.
Veil nods
Veil: "Yes, David told me everything..wow.. that must have been such a release for you."
Nettle nods and grips Veil's shoulder. "I know it was just a seeking...and I love to jump to conclusions...but it was my turn for revenge. I froze in my seeking..." Nettle stops for a moment. "I guess this is a time for healing for everyone."
Nettle: "Veil..."
Veil: "Yes?"
Nettle: "Are you...moving in with David now?"
Veil frowns a bit
Veil: "I don't know, actually. It hasn't come up. There's no need to rush things, we will have time."
Nettle: "Well, I'm glad at least you get to help him raise her...goddess willing...and can tell us about how she's doing. Oh please let me know how this progresses, Veil!!"
Veil smiles
Veil: "Of course I will! She is so very smart..."
Nettle laughs. "I actually meant between you and David!"
Veil laughs
Veil: "Oh..ooooh!"
Nettle laughs again and smiles.
Veil: "hahahaha!"
Veil: "Of course, of course I will."
Nettle: "And remember, you two owe us a double-date!"
Nettle looks steadily at Veil. "Because Alec IS coming back. I have to believe that now."
Veil smiles softly at her friend
Veil: "Yes, he will come back to you
Veil hugs Nettle
Veil: "Everything will turn out alright. You'll see."
Nettle hugs Veil back. "You know, Veil?"
Nettle: "This has turned out to be a great day after all."
Veil smiles
Veil: "Yes it has. I'm glad we had our talk. And I'm glad.. that I finally told someone about myself. All I have to do now is work up the courage to tell David.."
Nettle nods. "Thank you, Veil. You don't know how much that meant to me to hear you tell me of yourself after so long of knowing nothing. I'm...very flattered and proud that you did. I know he will be understanding. He's...different."
Veil nods and smiles to herself.
Veil: "And very special. He'll understand. He has to..."

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